1902-1904 Land Rushes

The farmers who did stay changed the county. Borden had 776 people on 129 ranches and farms in 1900; by 1910 it counted 1,386 residents and 228 farms, thirty-six of them worked by tenants. Cotton, first planted in the 1890s on a few acres, spread to more than 20,000 acres by 1929, when the county had 1,505 people. Isolation had its consolations. Mary Blankenship, who passed through in 1901, recalled: "We had plenty of time to be still and know God. He was our nearest neighbor." The Depression ended the growth.

What the plaque says

1902-1904 Land Rushes Cowboys and settlers fought here in early days for right to claim lands placed in public domain in 1902 by Texas courts. To keep land they were using, ranchers sent their men, wearing blue ribbon armbands, to file claims at office of county clerk. Nesters, with red ribbons, rushed for same land. To avoid bloodshed, Sheriff W. K. Clark disarmed men. For 3 days prior to deadlines, the cowboys and nesters had knockdown, dragout fights at the filing window. Later, nesters starved out, because of drouths; land they took up reverted to grazing. (1970)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Borden County — steps away
• Mushaway Peak — 3.3 mi
• Fluvanna — 20 mi
• Town of Knapp — 21 mi